Monthly Archives: February 2010

Archive of posts published in the specified Month

Ruled by Parasites

The following was a reader’s comment to my article in American Thinker, “Why Elitists Fail“ Human beings can exist in one of only two modes: by controlling nature, or by controlling those who control nature. Those in the first category

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Critiquing Populists

David Broder writes a great piece in the New York Times, The Populist Addiction excerpt: It’s easy to see why politicians would be drawn to the populist pose. First, it makes everything so simple. The economic crisis was caused by

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From Wall Street to Copenhagen

Science is a realm of discovery, skepticism, understanding, confirmation and challenge. But throughout history science has been polluted by political considerations.  In the Middle Ages the church considered any theory of the universe without the earth at the center heresy.

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Why Voters Rejected Elitism

From “Why Elitists Fail” in American Thinker, January 30, 2010 Even the brightest minds cannot escape emotional impediments to a rational conclusion. Combining such emotional rationalism with a focus on theories detached from the verification of practical experience can be

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Common faults of organizational problem solving

Success is knowing what worked yesterday.  The solutions that appear to work are often clear only in hindsight, and we humans can find a reason out of just about any set of circumstances. Real understanding is indicated more by the

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Controlling the Access to Data

Thomas Sowell writes in the National Review The ‘Science’ Mantra Excerpt: Today, politicized “science” has too big a stake in the global warming hysteria to let the facts speak for themselves and let the chips fall where they may. Too

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The Tao of Arby’s

Tales from the road… At an Arby’s/ Pilot Truck stop off I-65 in Indiana.  A conversation: ” I would like a medium Arby’s roast beef sandwich.” “Would you like to get double meat for an extra dollar, sir?” (surprised) “Wouldn’t

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What Did Not Cause the Financial Collapse

With the clarity of time we can look back at the brink of the collapse that hit us just prior to the last national election.  In the midst of the collapse we were stunned and angry, and tended to blame

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The Four Elements of a Free Market

“Could free markets have sorted out the mess without extraordinary government action? Yes, but only by destroying the remains of the financial system and possibly putting tens of millions of people out of work. Despite virulent public opposition to the

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Replace the FDIC with the CIIC

Here is an idea for our times. We create a Federal Agency called the Consumer Investment Information Corporation. It is funded by a fee on all banks and institutions needing an independent investment rating. It is governed by nine people;

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Facing Mistakes

One of the most stifling attributes of political life is the inability or the unwillingness for anyone to admit a mistake. There is so much uncertainty about actions that often require significant action that mistakes are bound to happen- serious

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The Job Creation Myth

I am constantly amazed at how sitting political leaders and naive citizens think that the government can create jobs. If the government could create jobs why would we ever tolerate any unemployment?  Either the leaders are economically ignorant or liars.

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An Antidote to Arrogance

from Paul Johnson “The study of history is a powerful antidote to contemporary arrogance.  It is humbling to discover how many of our glib assumptions, which seem to us novel and plausible, have been tested before, not once but many

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Experts on Tap

“In other words, experts are often called in, not to provide factual information or dispassionate analysis for the purpose of decision-making by responsible officials, but to give political cover for decisions already made and based on other consideration entirely. The

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Fannie Mae : The Federal Reserve for Housing

“Fannie and Freddie played the political game even more fiercely than their opponents, spending millions of dollars on armies of lobbyists on Capitol Hill. Each company was a revolving door for the powerful in Washington- both Republican and Democrat. Newt

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Experiences in Health Care Regulation

An excellent article on the health care dilemma ‘A Wasted Opportunity’ Wellpoint’s CEO on ObamaCare’s mistakes and how to pick up the political pieces. by By JOSEPH RAGO in the Wall Street Journal excerpts Mrs. Braly says, when 85 cents

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The True Supporters of Capitalism

“Despite elite concerns of a public backlash against capitalism, it has been the public, not Wall Street or Washington, that has supported capitalism all along.  Financiers were disconcertingly quick to run straight into the governments arms, while the public has

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Getting Specific on Health Care

Campaigns promise generalities but laws have to be specific. The health care disaster shows how difficult the road from promise to result is. The current mess simply tried to do too much. There are two main problems in health care:

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Rebelyid Hump Day Recommendations

Richard Cohen writes in the Washington Post “From John Edwards, lessons on celebrity and politics” “- the lesson to be learned from the John Edwards affair. “We have substituted the camera — fame, celebrity — for both achievement and the

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El Al Ad

Tips to Rabbi Bat-Or. I do not know if this is a real ad, but it really doesn’t matter.

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